CLEARWATER, FLA - A woman whose home was broken into was persistent to find the items stolen from her house, which is why she searched online.
She said she found the items for sale on OfferUp.
“All the items were there,” Jessica Burrell said.
Detectives with the Clearwater Police Department said Burrell’s home was broken into on Father’s Day.
“It was definitely something scary to come home to,” Burrell said.
Burrell could not ignore her gut feeling to search online for the stolen items. She was missing various gaming consoles.
“The very next day something just (told) me (to) keep looking on Craigslist, OfferUp, Letgo,” Burrell said.
She found a seller on OfferUp who posted pictures of items that looked familiar to her. She said she stumbled across a reflection of a man she recognized on an item that was not hers. She said the man, who called himself Jim Denver online, was actually Nicholas Allard, a man she knows.
“It’s disgusting and it’s horrible,” she said.
According to Burrell, Allard knew she was not going to be home that day.
“She did the right thing. She contacted us and got us involved,” Rob Shaw, Public Information Officer with the Clearwater Police Department, said.
Officers arranged a meet up with Allard. He was arrested on Tuesday, June 19.
According to the arrest affidavit, Allard told detectives his friend broke into the home, but that he agreed to sell the items for some profit.
Shaw said if you see electronics online for a low price, you should be cautious.
“That’s probably a good sign that something (is) not right here,” Shaw said.
Shaw said people can call their nonemergency line or fraud department if they ever have any questions.
Burrell said she is glad she did not give up.
“He was so eager to sell it that there was no way I was going to let him get away with our stuff again,” Burrell said.
Shaw said detectives continue to investigate to determine whether or not there were other people involved.
Allard is charged with dealing in stolen property, burglary, and criminal mischief.
